[ By this time, Graham was integrating into his performances not only arm wrestling contests but also weightlifting challenges (mainly involving ex-Olympian Ken Patera) and posing routines. One of his most memorable feuds was against McDaniel, with whom he wrestled numerous bouts with between 1973 and 1974.] Among the matches they participated in were Indian Strap matches. It was during the feud with McDaniel that Superstar also teamed with Koloff to take on McDaniel and The Crusher in tag team matches. It was also during his time in the AWA that he began wrestling Ivan Putski.
In September and October 1974 Graham took leave from the AWA to join the International Wrestling Alliance's "Super Wide Series" tour of Japan, where he fought such local stars as Mighty Inoue, Animal Hamaguchi and Rusher Kimura. Following his return from Japan, Graham formed a tag team with Dusty Rhodes. He left the AWA and returned to the NWA in May 1975, signing up with Red Bastien's Dallas-based promotion for five months and taking the local "Brass Knucks" title from Mad Dog Vachon on August 8. For most of October, Graham worked for the Mid Atlantic promotion in North Carolina, standing in for Ric Flair
Richard Morgan Fliehr (born February 25, 1949), known professionally as Ric Flair, is an American professional wrestler. Regarded by multiple peers and journalists as the greatest professional wrestler of all time, Flair has had a career spanni ...
, who had just been injured in a plane crash.
World Wide Wrestling Federation and return to NWA (1975–1976)
Graham made his in–ring debut in the World Wide Wrestling Federation (WWWF) on October 25, 1975, in a tag-team match at the Boston Garden in which he and Spiros Arion defeated WWWF Heavyweight Champion
The WWE Championship is a world heavyweight championship created and promoted by the American professional wrestling promotion WWE, representing the Raw brand division. It is one of two world titles on WWE's main roster, alongside SmackDown's ...
Bruno Sammartino and Dominic De Nucci
Domenico A. Nucciarone (January 23, 1932 – August 12, 2021) was an Italian-American professional wrestler and trainer better known under his ring name of Dominic DeNucci. He held over a dozen championships around the world in the 1960s and 197 ...
. At this time The Grand Wizard became Graham's manager.[ Another major feud at this time was with Polish muscleman Ivan Putski.
A brief contract with the NWA in Houston, Texas followed from June to August 1976, after which Graham went on his second tour of Japan, this time accompanied by Ivan Koloff. He feuded with ]Antonio Inoki
Muhammad Hussain Inoki (born ; February 20, 1943 – October 1, 2022) was a Japanese professional wrestler, martial artist, politician, and promoter of professional wrestling and mixed martial arts. He was best known by the ring name , a homag ...
during this Japanese run. After returning to America, Graham and Koloff made an unsuccessful attempt to launch their own wrestling promotion in Southern California. In November 1976, on the invitation of Dusty Rhodes, Graham joined the NWA promotion in Florida, beating Rhodes for the Florida heavyweight title on November 22 at the West Palm Beach Auditorium. His work in this period included occasional visits to St Louis, Missouri, where he took on NWA World Heavyweight Champion Harley Race
Harley Leland Race (April 11, 1943 – August 1, 2019) was an American professional wrestler, promoter, and trainer.
Race wrestled in the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA), the American Wrestling Association (AWA), the World Wrestling Federatio ...
.
Return to WWF (1977–1978)
Graham returned to the WWWF in April 1977 after an agreement with promoter Vincent J. McMahon "Senior". Graham defeated Bruno Sammartino for the WWWF Heavyweight Championship on April 30, 1977, in Baltimore
Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic, and the 30th most populous city in the United States with a population of 585,708 in 2020. Baltimore was d ...
, Maryland.[ Graham held the title for nine and a half months.]
During his reign, he wrestled across America and in Japan (February 1978), facing challengers such as former champion Bruno Sammartino, Jack Brisco, Dusty Rhodes, Pedro Morales, Don Muraco, Mil Mascaras, Strong Kobayashi, Carlos Rocha and Riki Choshu.[ He would also resume his feud with Ivan Putski. On 25 January 1978 in Miami, Florida at the Orange Bowl football stadium, Graham wrestled against then- NWA World Heavyweight Champion ]Harley Race
Harley Leland Race (April 11, 1943 – August 1, 2019) was an American professional wrestler, promoter, and trainer.
Race wrestled in the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA), the American Wrestling Association (AWA), the World Wrestling Federatio ...
in a WWWF World Heavyweight Championship vs. NWA World Heavyweight Championship unification match which ended in a one-hour time-limit draw.[ Although a defeat by ]Bob Backlund
Robert Louis Backlund (born August 14, 1949) is an American retired amateur and professional wrestler. He is best known for his appearances in the World Wide Wrestling Federation/World Wrestling Federation from 1976 to 1984 and in the 1990s, wher ...
, who was to embody the virtuous "all-American" wrestler, had been written into Graham's current contract with the WWWF, Graham suggested another outcome to McMahon: that Ivan Koloff should turn on him, thus starting a feud that would make Graham a fan favorite. McMahon refused because of the handshake deal to make Backlund the new fan favorite champion and he did not want to go back on his word. It was also unheard of for a counter-cultural character like Graham to be a fan favorite, because McMahon and many old promoters saw Graham as a confirmed heel and therefore a negative role model. Graham eventually lost the title to Backlund on February 20, 1978.[
Another feud Graham had as champion was with Dusty Rhodes, which culminated in a Texas Bullrope match. His confrontations with Rhodes continued after Graham had been forced to drop the belt to Backlund.][ Rhodes himself, a long-time friend of Graham's, recalled these matches with Graham in 1978 as among the most exciting and memorable of his career.
]
Return to NWA (1978–1982)
Disillusioned by the loss of his belt, Graham left the WWWF in December 1978 and accepted an offer to join Paul Boesch's promotion in Houston, Texas, lending himself out for other NWA events in California and Florida as well.[ In April 1979 he embarked on his third IWA tour of Japan, where he wrestled the same men he had worked with in 1974. On October 8, 1979, Graham became the ]Continental Wrestling Association
Continental Wrestling Association (later the Championship Wrestling Association) was a wrestling promotion managed by Jerry Jarrett. The CWA was the name of the "governing body" for the Championship Wrestling, Inc. promotion which was usually ref ...
(CWA) World Champion. On November 8, 1979 Graham lost the belt to Jerry Lawler in Lexington, Kentucky. His following NWA engagements in Kentucky, Tennessee, Georgia and Texas became fewer and rarer until he stopped wrestling in April 1980. Graham wrestled only two matches (one in Canada and one in Los Angeles) in the whole of 1981. He spent some time competing in Japan in 1982, where he added some martial arts techniques to his repertoire.[
]
Second return to WWF (1982–1983)
Graham returned to the now renamed World Wrestling Federation (WWF) in September 1982. He debuted in the promotion with an entirely new look: lean, with a bald head and mustache, and sporting black karate pants. Graham later stated that he wanted to retire the "Superstar" character out of frustration with Vince McMahon Sr. for not letting him become a fan favorite. After his return, he attacked Backlund, destroying his championship belt.[ He challenged Backlund for the WWF Championship, but was unable to win the title.][ He left the promotion in April 1983.]
Return to AWA and third return to NWA (1983–1986)
Graham signed up with the AWA again in October 1983, wrestling mainly in the Mid West. By the following year he had regained his earlier body weight and in April 1984 he began his NWA run with Championship Wrestling from Florida, first as a member of Kevin Sullivan's Army of Darkness and later as the group's opponent after he tired of Sullivan's abuse of his valet, The Lock, and stopped Sullivan from beating her at ringside. From November 1984 Graham joined Jim Crockett Promotions (Mid-Atlantic Wrestling) in North Carolina, working for Paul Jones in his feud
A feud , referred to in more extreme cases as a blood feud, vendetta, faida, clan war, gang war, or private war, is a long-running argument or fight, often between social groups of people, especially families or clans. Feuds begin because one part ...
against Jimmy Valiant. It was during this stint, in the summer of 1985, that Graham bulked up further, and returned to his tie-dyed look, growing a full goatee and dyeing the mustache blond.[
]
Third return to the WWF (1986–1989)
Graham returned to the WWF one more time in June 1986, now as a fan favorite. After a few appearances, it was diagnosed in August that he required a hip replacement. The footage of Graham's hip replacement surgery was shown on WWF TV on September 27 as a means of promoting his comeback. He returned in mid-1987 and worked a heavy schedule from mid July to late October, feuding with Harley Race
Harley Leland Race (April 11, 1943 – August 1, 2019) was an American professional wrestler, promoter, and trainer.
Race wrestled in the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA), the American Wrestling Association (AWA), the World Wrestling Federatio ...
and Butch Reed. However, the strain on his hip as well as his ankles also deteriorating proved to be too much. In Syracuse on October 27, the One Man Gang supposedly retired him from active competition permanently with a running splash on the concrete floor after Graham's win over Reed. In this incident, aired on the November 14, 1987 episode of ''Superstars
A superstar is a widely acclaimed celebrity.
Superstar or superstars may also refer to:
People
* Warhol superstars, the associates of Andy Warhol
* WWE Superstar, a branding term referring to a WWE wrestler
* Superstar Billy Graham (born 1943) ...
'', Don Muraco came to Graham's aid, and Graham subsequently became Muraco's manager. Graham's last wrestling match, also against Butch Reed and at 44 years of age, actually took place on November 7, 1987, in St Louis, Missouri. Over the next year, in between bouts of surgery, Graham worked for the WWF as a commentator.[
]
Fourth return to WWE (2004–2009)
On March 14, 2004, Graham was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame class of 2004, the night before '' WrestleMania XX'', by then- World Heavyweight Champion Triple H, whom Graham had helped inspire to become a professional wrestler.[ Graham later sold his WWE Hall of Fame ring to purchase anti-rejection medications to help treat his liver transplant.
Several months later, Graham joined WWE on a swing of nine televised events where he was interviewed by Jonathan Coachman (on December 28) before performing a skit which ended with Coachman getting knocked out.][ On February 25, 2005, Graham appeared at another live event and was again interviewed by Coachman before knocking him out.][ Three days later, Graham appeared on '' Raw'', where he encouraged ]Randy Orton
Randal Keith Orton (born April 1, 1980) is an American Professional wrestling, professional wrestler and actor who is signed to WWE, where he performs on the Raw (WWE brand), Raw brand but is currently out of action due to a back injury. H ...
to do something to make himself notable.[ On October 3 at '']WWE Homecoming
Raw Homecoming was a television special that was broadcast live on October 3, 2005 on the USA Network. It was named as such because it was the first edition of WWE's flagship show ''Monday Night Raw'' to air on the USA Network since 2000, after ai ...
'', Graham participated in a Legends Ceremony with 24 other WWE legends.[ On the January 23, 2006 episode of ''Raw'', he promoted his book and DVD.][ Graham parted ways with WWE in 2009.]
Fifth return to WWE (2015–present)
In November 2015, Graham announced that he had signed a legends contract (a long-term deal to make infrequent, non-wrestling appearances) in a Facebook post.
Legacy
Roberta Morgan's 1979 kayfabe book ''Main Event'' stated, "Although he is a rule bender, raham Raham, a biblical character, was mentioned in the genealogical lists of 1 Chronicles, i1 Chronicles 2:44 He was a descendant of Caleb and Hezron, a son of Shema, and the father of Jorkeam.
References
Books of Chronicles people
{{bible-stub ...
has managed to stay very popular with the fans, probably because of his skill, strength, and colorful personality". As a headliner in Madison Square Garden
Madison Square Garden, colloquially known as The Garden or by its initials MSG, is a multi-purpose indoor arena in New York City. It is located in Midtown Manhattan between Seventh and Eighth avenues from 31st to 33rd Street, above Pennsylva ...
, which was the WWF's primary arena throughout his tenure, Graham sold out 19 of 20 shows.[
Many wrestlers have based their looks and styles on Billy Graham. Some examples are ]Ric Flair
Richard Morgan Fliehr (born February 25, 1949), known professionally as Ric Flair, is an American professional wrestler. Regarded by multiple peers and journalists as the greatest professional wrestler of all time, Flair has had a career spanni ...
, Austin Idol
Michael McCord (born October 26, 1949) is an American retired professional wrestler, better known by the ring name Austin Idol. He is best known for his appearances in the Mid-South with the Continental Wrestling Association, in particular his rec ...
, Steve Austin, Scott Steiner, Triple H, Hulk Hogan
Terry Eugene Bollea (; born August 11, 1953), better known by his ring name Hulk Hogan, is an American retired professional wrestler. He is widely regarded as the most recognized wrestling star worldwide and the most popular wrestler of the 19 ...
and Jesse "The Body" Ventura.[ Graham was also famous for his characteristic use of the word "brother" in his promos, referring to either commentators or fellow wrestlers. This stems from his background attending evangelical revival meetings, where everybody referred to each other as "brother" or "sister" (in Christ). Graham's use of the word caught on, and since then countless wrestlers have also used "brother" in their own respective promos, most notably ]Hulk Hogan
Terry Eugene Bollea (; born August 11, 1953), better known by his ring name Hulk Hogan, is an American retired professional wrestler. He is widely regarded as the most recognized wrestling star worldwide and the most popular wrestler of the 19 ...
.
Graham has often lectured young athletes on the dangers of steroids. His autobiography, ''Tangled Ropes'', was released by WWE on January 10, 2006.[ WWE also released a DVD about Graham's career, titled ''20 Years Too Soon: The "Superstar" Billy Graham Story''.][ Graham had a new DVD released in 2013 through Hannibal Pro Wrestling and Seriocity Productions titled ''"Superstar" Billy Graham: Full Disclosure''.
]
Disputes with the McMahons
In the early 1990s, U.S. federal agents were investigating Dr. George Zahorian
''United States v. McMahon et al'' (9:93-cr-01276) is a 1994 United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York criminal court case brought against Vince McMahon, chairman of the World Wrestling Federation on suspicion of supplyin ...
, a Harrisburg, Pennsylvania
Harrisburg is the capital city of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Dauphin County. With a population of 50,135 as of the 2021 census, Harrisburg is the 9th largest city and 15th largest municipality in Pe ...
physician who had been dispensing anabolic steroids
Anabolic steroids, also known more properly as anabolic–androgenic steroids (AAS), are steroidal androgens that include natural androgens like testosterone as well as synthetic androgens that are structurally related and have similar effects t ...
and other drugs to wrestlers at WWF events. In 1991, Dr. Zahorian was convicted under the U.S. federal Anti-Drug Abuse Act
The Anti-Drug Abuse Act of 1986 was a law pertaining to the War on Drugs passed by the U.S. Congress and signed into law by U.S. President Ronald Reagan. Among other things, they changed the system of federal supervised release from a rehabilita ...
of 1988 which prohibited the prescription of steroids for non-therapeutic purposes. This led to WWF owner Vince McMahon Jr., who admitted to being a steroid user himself, being put on trial on charges of steroid distribution in 1994. The trial concluded with McMahon's acquittal. During this time Graham personally sued Zahorian and the WWF, claiming that they had forced him to take steroids to maintain his position in the company. His lawsuit was unsuccessful, partly because he had been using steroids for a decade preceding his WWF debut. Recalling the lawsuit on a 2003 episode of '' WWE Confidential'', he attributed the litigation to his bitterness and claimed that he was an innovator of steroid use in the organization.
Graham went on a public awareness campaign regarding the dangers of steroids during this time, including an appearance with McMahon on '' The Phil Donahue Show'' in 1992. During the ''Donahue'' taping Graham claimed to have witnessed WWF officials sexually abuse children. McMahon claimed the abuse had never taken place, and Graham later admitted that he made up the allegations, hoping to extort "hush money" out of the WWF. In his autobiography, Graham describes making the allegations as being "my most shameful moment, not only in the wrestling profession, but in my life". Graham wrote an apology to McMahon but received no response until his 2002 liver transplant.
Five years after being inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame, Graham was released from his consultancy position in WWE. He sold his Hall of Fame ring on eBay to help pay for medical bills and requested that he be entirely removed from the Hall of Fame after Abdullah the Butcher was inducted. Graham complained that Abdullah had never wrestled in the promotion. Abdullah did however wrestle for the WWWF in 1972.
Graham spoke out against Linda McMahon during her 2010 Senate campaign, claiming that she was distancing herself from the racy programming that she profited from while acting as CEO for WWE. Upon learning that his liver condition had worsened, Graham reached out to apologize to the McMahons, even offering to be a spokesman for Linda McMahon's campaign.
In July 2015, Graham sent a letter to Vince McMahon requesting to take the position of Dusty Rhodes, who had recently died, at NXT. Graham received criticism from fans due to his timing and opportunism. He defended himself, calling his critics "evil subhumans", and compared a possible reconciliation with McMahon to that of long-time WWE critic Bruno Sammartino, who reconciled with McMahon and was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame class of 2013.
Personal life
Family
As stated in his autobiography ''Tangled Ropes'', Graham and his wife Valerie, whom he married in 1978, were never able to have children. Graham has two children from a previous marriage to Madelyn Miluso.[ His daughter Capella was born on June 8, 1972.][''Tangled Ropes'', p. 125.] She was named after a star he read about in the ''Atlas of the Universe''.[ His son Joey was born on March 18, 1975.][''Tangled Ropes'', p. 160–161.] Joey was born with double pneumonia and an enlarged heart, which was later surgically corrected.[ His godfather was wrestler Dusty Rhodes.][
]
Health
Graham received a liver transplant in 2002 from a 26-year-old female donor, who had died in a car crash. Graham had cirrhosis at the time of his transplant. Graham was again hospitalized on May 24, 2006, due to a bowel obstruction from an earlier surgery.[
In July 2010, Graham was hospitalized due to liver problems.][ Afterward, he announced that he probably only had one year left to live without another liver transplant.][ Graham reserved a burial spot at the Green Acres cemetery in Scottsdale, Arizona, next to Eddie Guerrero.] On March 31, 2011, '' The Phoenix New Times'' reported that Graham's doctor, Hector Rodriguez-Luna, acknowledged that Graham's advanced fibrosis may be early cirrhosis and that he could live for two more years if he took Interferon
Interferons (IFNs, ) are a group of signaling proteins made and released by host cells in response to the presence of several viruses. In a typical scenario, a virus-infected cell will release interferons causing nearby cells to heighten the ...
—a drug to help slow his hepatitis C—and stayed in shape. By 2012, Graham was diagnosed with third-stage liver disease and cirrhosis.
On January 17, 2013, Graham was hospitalized with double pneumonia and possible heart failure. He was re-hospitalized for a liver complication in October 2014.[
On August 2, 2016, Graham was hospitalized while undergoing a medical procedure due to internal bleeding; he underwent surgery on August 3 to identify the cause of the issues.
]
Championships and accomplishments
* 50th State Big Time Wrestling
50th State Big Time Wrestling (sometimes referred to as NWA Hawaii or Mid-Pacific Promotions) was a professional wrestling promotion headquartered in Honolulu, Hawaii in the United States that promoted professional wrestling matches throughout Ha ...
** NWA Hawaii Heavyweight Championship ( 1 time)
* Championship Wrestling from Florida
** NWA Florida Heavyweight Championship ( 2 times)
** NWA Florida Tag Team Championship ( 1 time) – with Ox Baker
** NWA Southern Heavyweight Championship ''(Florida version)'' ( 1 time)
* Continental Wrestling Association
Continental Wrestling Association (later the Championship Wrestling Association) was a wrestling promotion managed by Jerry Jarrett. The CWA was the name of the "governing body" for the Championship Wrestling, Inc. promotion which was usually ref ...
** CWA World Heavyweight Championship ( 1 time)
* International Pro Wrestling
** IWA World Heavyweight Championship IWA World Heavyweight Championship is the name given for the principal title of a number of professional wrestling promotions that operate under the acronym "I.W.A." (despite not sharing corporate name).
It may refer to:
* IWA World Heavyweight ...
( 1 time)
* NWA Big Time Wrestling
** NWA Brass Knuckles Championship ''(Texas version)'' (4 times
"4 Times" (stylized as "4 TIMES") is the 50th single by pop/ R&B singer Koda Kumi. It was released on August 17, 2011 and debuted at No. 6, remaining on the Oricon charts for nine consecutive weeks. In commemoration of it being the fiftieth singl ...
)
* NWA San Francisco
** NWA World Tag Team Championship (''San Francisco version'') ( 1 time) – with Pat Patterson
Pat Patterson (born Pierre Clermont; January 19, 1941 – December 2, 2020) was a Canadian-American professional wrestler and producer, widely known for his long tenure in the professional wrestling promotion WWE, first as a wrestler, then as ...
* '' Pro Wrestling Illustrated''
** Most Hated Wrestler of the Year (1973)
** Match of the Year (1977)
** Match of the Year (1978) [
** Ranked No. 277 of the top 500 singles wrestlers of the "PWI Years" in 2003
* '']Pro Wrestling This Week
''Superstars of Wrestling'' is a nationally syndicated professional wrestling television program that aired throughout the United States from 1986 to 1992. Created and produced by Joe Pedicino, the series broadcast eight hours of wrestling from ...
''
** Wrestler of the Week (June 1–6, 1987)
* Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame and Museum
** Class of 2009
* World (Wide) Wrestling Federation / Entertainment
** WWWF Heavyweight Championship
The WWE Championship is a world heavyweight championship created and promoted by the American professional wrestling promotion WWE, representing the Raw brand division. It is one of two world titles on WWE's main roster, alongside SmackDown's ...
( 1 time)
** WWE Hall of Fame ( Class of 2004)
** Slammy Award (1 time)
*** Hulk Hogan
Terry Eugene Bollea (; born August 11, 1953), better known by his ring name Hulk Hogan, is an American retired professional wrestler. He is widely regarded as the most recognized wrestling star worldwide and the most popular wrestler of the 19 ...
Real American Award (1987
File:1987 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The MS Herald of Free Enterprise capsizes after leaving the Port of Zeebrugge in Belgium, killing 193; Northwest Airlines Flight 255 crashes after takeoff from Detroit Metropolitan Airport, k ...
)
* '' Wrestling Observer Newsletter''
** Most Washed Up Wrestler (1982)
** Best Pro Wrestling Book (2006) with Keith Greenberg
** Wrestling Observer Newsletter Hall of Fame (Class of 1996)
References
External links
*
*
*
Just Sports Stats
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Graham, Superstar Billy
1943 births
American bodybuilders
American color commentators
American football defensive linemen
American male professional wrestlers
American players of Canadian football
Canadian football defensive linemen
Liver transplant recipients
Living people
Montreal Alouettes players
People from Paradise Valley, Arizona
Players of American football from Arizona
Professional wrestlers from Arizona
Professional wrestling announcers
Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame and Museum
Professional wrestling managers and valets
Professional wrestling trainers
Sportspeople from Phoenix, Arizona
Stampede Wrestling alumni
WWE Hall of Fame inductees
WWE Champions
20th-century professional wrestlers
NWA Florida Heavyweight Champions
NWA Southern Heavyweight Champions (Florida version)
WCWA Brass Knuckles Champions